Well Done James Lawton

March 7, 2011

Considering this country’s press are still talking about Wayne Rooney’s elbow on James McCarthy, we’re entitled to be surprised that so little has been made of Jamie Carragher’s assault on Nani yesterday.

It was reported in The Telegraph this week that Mark Clattenburg asked both Rooney and McCarthy what happened two weeks ago, with the Wigan player failing to mention that he had been elbowed by Rooney, instead saying that he was fine.

I’m sure when Nani was showing Phil Dowd the blood dripping down his leg and the gauged out hole made by Carragher’s boot, he wasn’t telling him that he was fine. Steven Gerrard was shouting at Nani to get up whilst Carragher continued to protest his innocence.

Just like the red card David Luiz should have been shown on Tuesday was largely ignored by the press, the lengthy ban Carragher should have received on top of a red card has had a sentence or two in today’s press.

Apart from in an article written by James Lawton for The Independent, It’s a scandal that Carragher will get away with his assault on Nani. This is by no means an arse kissing session, making United out to be perfect angels who were robbed on Sunday, rather an honest account of what happened, something pretty much every other journalist has failed to do today, with them far more concerned with Sir Alex Ferguson’s decision not to speak to them again.

Some of the best bits: At the end of a week of refereeing controversy it was that Jamie Carragher was merely given a yellow card for a tackle on Nani so sickening, so dangerous, that it rendered more farcical than ever the insistence of the football authorities that they cannot revisit extreme cases of negligence, irresponsibility or – let’s not fail to explore the full range of possibilities in this case – outright failure of nerve by a match official.

Phil Dowd was close at hand, was surrounded by protesting United players and Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard – who appeared to be suggesting that his team-mate was not guilty of one of the worst fouls to disfigure any ground in recent memory – and then administered two yellow cards, one to Carragher, still protesting his innocence, and the other to Edwin van der Sar, incredulous that a tackle of such crude violence could elicit such a mild punishment.

Sometimes you have to despair of the inability of football to police itself – and of those who watch it to separate their tribal instincts from the evidence of their own eyes.

We had another example of this after an incident that followed hard on the Carragher tackle when Rafael, United’s young Brazilian full-back, was yellow-carded for a tackle on Lucas, a moment after the latter’s team-mate Maxi Rodriguez had come at him thigh-level.

Rafael was inflamed, no doubt, and his tackle was reckless – but his feet were low, unlike Carragher’s, whose boot hit Nani’s standing leg shin-high – and Lucas was unscathed. However, this did not prevent Rafael being booed relentlessly through the rest of the match.

Some will say Nani’s notoriety in the play-acting department worked against his outrage and that of his team-mates – especially when he got to his feet to join in the protests before falling again – but you didn’t have to be a drama critic to detect authenticity in his tears and his shock or, as United’s most threatening player, his departure on a stretcher. Sometimes there really is a wolf in the grounds and yesterday his name was Carragher.

This may offend some Merseyside sensitivities – and we all know what a sterling professional Carragher has been down the years – but you had to be living on another planet not to be revolted by this piece of action. Nani wasn’t tackled – he was, in effect, assaulted– and we can re-run the film a thousands times without a softening of that verdict.

Saturday's game might pose an interesting dilemma for Sir Alex. Obertan or Valencia on the right. I'd go with Fabio on the left and the rest of the team would be the big guns. Giggs will be rested for Marseille. Whoever playes on the right on Saturday, has a chance to impress the manager and get picked for Marseille. Unless, Sir Alex plans to play like this next Tuesday:

Rooney, Carrick, Scholes, Fletcher, Giggs - Berbatov (or Hernandez)

A 4-5-1 would make for a tight game. I know that most of us would like to attack Marseille from the off, but there's too much at stake.

I hate how Chelsea and Liverpool build their squads, not to mention how our neighbours do in the market. But keeping faith is of paramount importance now.

We cannot allow ourselves to be blind to the fact that the midfield is in need of strengthening, that we could spend some quid on some players, but NOW is NOW. We have to keep the faith, the faith that this team CAN win the title. Come summer, there might be a culling, but we MUST keep the faith and believe.

Hi mate. Sure. When I usually think about possible lineups, I always think that at some point, the wingers might swap places. It's not often that Giggs would play a full game on the right though. Who did you have in mind to play on the left against Marseille? Evra?

Re The Arse, we have generally tended to use speed against them, and it's been very effective. and obertan certainly has plenty of that. But the last time I saw him, I thought he lacked a little bit of composure. Thought he was trying too hard, to be honest. When will Park be back?

I am not keen on starting scholes and giggs together. I don't mean to slag either of them off, but as honest criticism, I 't think both of them are a bit lacking in pace and energy -- not their fault, blame Old Man Time. I like to see one of them on the park, but not both. Evra could play wide as a winger -- in fact, he used to play as a winger and his style as a fullback isn't that much different. If we put Fabio in behind him, that might do us on the left -- two good, fast attacking players and it would be defensively strong too. I would prefer to do that than have Rooney out left.

If Rooney has to play wide, put him right, but I'd like to see us try what some here have been suggesting: put him in the middle as an attacking midfielder, behind Berbatov, either running up in support of the attack, or dropping back to give the midfield a bit of energy or just make a fucking nuisance of himself. If Berba has the ball, and Rooney runs through, that will at least cause some doubt and confusion among the defenders, give them something else to think about, and I think it's that sort of situation that Berba's so good at taking advantage of.

@Dimitar ... right, keep the faith. I am not sure about a "culling" in summer. Maybe a "bolstering", though. I could see one established A-list midfielder coming in, especially if Scholes hangs up his boots, while SAF starts to bring more of our youth through. Replacing VDS must be our number one priority, though, and I;m not sure Lindegaard is it (not saying he isn't, either, just haven't seen enough of him).

united.george ... cheers mate! I don't mind Sacramento. I almost moved to San Jose a few years back, Had a decent job offer with Adobe, but the cost of living was fucking outrageous. 2 to 3 times what it is here! Only way I could afford it, even with a big pay rise, would have been to live somewhere cheaper and commute an hour or 90 minutes each way, fuck that! And now, since the arse fell out of the housing market, I am stuck here anyway.

Giggs and Scholes will kept for the Marseille game. The tempo of the game in Europe, isn't as intense as the premiership. Obertan will probably figure on Saturday, with hopefully Park, if Dan is right, will be ready along with Tony v for the Marseille game.

The Carra tackle: it's only James Lawton, the Republik of Mancunia and Rafael that go Over the Top
By Brendan Leary on Mar 8, 11 12:16 PM in Columnists
The Carragher tackle on Nani has prompted some outright hysteria from the likes of James Lawton in the Independent and the poor sensitive paranoid androids on the Republik of Mancunia website.

The views they have expressed - such the idea this was one of the worst fouls in recent memory - are outright unbalanced and as well as lacking in clarity.

Look, as a Liverpool fan let me be very clear: by the standards of most referees in most games this season, that would be a red card. I would have had no complaints had Carragher got a red for it. It was reckless, no doubt.

But one of the worst fouls in recent memory? Please. It was late and high - halfway up his shin. But Carragher didn't go airborne and unlike Rooney's elbow, there was no malice.

Watch the incident again.

Nani first touch is with Carragher two yards away. Nani has his weight on his right foot and controls it with his left.

Nani's first touch is uncharacteristically poor. The ball bobbles, bouncing about a foot in the air. Carragher is a yard away from Nani with the ball .
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Ha Ha, a wee piece from "Liverpool Banter" keep up the good work. :D

stateside
l was in the states to visit my son who lives and works in new york state lt was a small town but my son told us to be careful where we went and keep to the main roads and don't use the side streets.
lt was nothing like hollywood what with the poverty as well l was glad to get back to salford.
l would put in 1 of your laughing smilies at this point if l knew how (any clues) but l'm only what is referred to as a silver server.

I Still Have A Funny Feeling Nani Will Be involved Against Arsenal. Remember Van Persie?"four weeks knee injury" suddenly returns! No disrespect to Van Persie but Nani's fitness is much better. Fingers Crossed!

Costas, I hear some talk of Park, but putting that aside, Rooney must start on the left (again) and Fletcher on the right (again)! Obertan is also a good choice against Marseilles. I do feel influenced by willierednut's intelligent view that Scholes and Giggs should start in Europe; however, three consecutive losses to chelsea, then liverpool, then arsenal is far worse than going out the CL, and we play arsenal first. I would like us to prioritize arsenal.

@tommy, yeah, it does pay to be careful, especially if you don't know your way around. I spent several months in Manhattan last year and had no troubles, liked it a lot. Recently, I have been spending a lot of time in a small town called Towson, outside Baltimore. Baltimore is no place for the feint-hearted, but Towson was fine, met a lot of great people there. Hahaha, the GPS system in my car actually has a red alert warning if you go into areas with high crime rates.

But hey, you can find trouble anywhere if you want to. I've been around the place a bit, lived in Asia, here, been to England, Europe and India a lot, grew up in Australia, and never really had any trouble to speak of, and it's not like I shut myself in a hotel and never go out.

The poverty here can be amazing. There's very little social support (not saying that's right or wrong, just observing) and the health care system is a mess. I have health care through my work, but I still don't know what I'd do if I got seriously ill. First time I went to San Francisco, I couldn't believe the number of homeless on the street -- and that was way before the recession. Even here, in midsize Sacramento, every second intersection has someone with a sign up begging for help.

As for smileys, the "codes" are just plain text. To get this one :-) you type colon-dash-close bracket

: - )

but without any spaces. To get this one :lol: you type colon-lol-colon

@Dandivine7 ... time will tell, but unless the gash is much less serious than we have been led to believe, I can't see him playing this weekend. It's not a question of fitness. It's a question of getting a deep wound to heal. And as I pointed out earlier, given it's location on the shin, there was to be some concern about keeping it clean, what with the shinguard and a sock right there, full of dirt and sweat. Unless they can be sure the wound is closed and won't re-open, I can't see them risking it.

Regarding the Rooney elbow incident - I'd like to watch the video of both Rooney and McCarthy for the 10 or so minutes that preceded the elbow.
Rooney took a cheap shot, no doubt, but it looked to me like payback for something that might have happened earlier.

And ohh Middy, get off it will ya...it doesnt matter what the dippers/rentboys/shiityfans say or think...this is about standing up for what you believe in, and we prefer it that way, and won't have it any other fuckin way. We refuse to be bitches of the FA and the media.

I am going to be slaughtered but I truly thinks this way. I am going to make some points, so just don’t jump to kill me and explain me where do you think I am wrong. I can’t believe people want Obertan and Bebe in arse game. I am not one to judge or made my mind too early, but these two are obvious. They both are absolute shit. None of that “they are for future” and “they are too young” crap. I just don’t think that they have anything close to the raw talent that is required to succeed in Man Utd. I saw them play several games I am puzzled by the fact that Welback is not playing and these two clowns do. Can anyone please state that they think that either Bebe or Obertan are better than Welback? I really hope that I am wrong, but in my heart I know that they will not succeed. It’s no big deal though, cause we didn’t spend too much money on them and that brings me to my more “reckless” comment “Our transfer policy for the past several years has been shit” Yep I just said it. I don’t think it was atrocious, but I believe too much money were spent with very marginal return. Close to 36 Mil on Hargo and Andy, wasted IMO. No comments required on Hargo, but I would like to remind everyone that right before we bought him he broke his leg and was only back in game for couple of months. It was serious enough to hold on his move IMO. Andy has been disappointing to say the least. Pathetic return on goals, injured a lot and in these 3 years he might have had 5-8 good to great games and has been shit most of the time. The worst part is that, it’s even more unknown as to what role is he going/trying to play in the team. He is not young anymore and 3 years is a long time. We also have the small fry like Obertan and Bebe, but I already talked about them. Now it comes the biggest mistake (ineffective use if funds) Berbatov. I understand that I just said that the highest scores is not a good piece of business. I am not blaming Berba, cause I think he is doing his best, but that’s not enough. We paid 30 mil for him. It took him two years to settle in, but even in his best year he doesn’t decide enough games for us. This year’s form is very inflated due to him having couple of high scoring games and don’t get me wrong I believe that this year he did enough to justify the price tag, but what about the previous two and what of future. He is almost 30 and his resale value is gone. I believe that his effectiveness will go down. What makes matters worse for him is that out game suffers. May be it’s not his fault, but I am not a fan of holding game and stuff. We always play with lightning fast wingers and make the counter our best weapons. Mid-table teams would never dare to press us before, but now we are useless cause we like to “build” our attack. In any event I truly believe that the 30 mil could have spend better. Do I blame anyone? Not at all, I am just saying that mistakes have been made in the transfer market and we are paying the price of those mistakes. It’s not all doom and gloom though. In Nani, Valencia, Chicharito and Smalling we get really good buys. We also have a really good squad, we need additions no doubt about it, but we don’t need major changes.

P.S. As already stated this is my honest opinion, so don’t start name calling and doubting my allegiance, that just immature.

I see. You know, it's quite possible that Ferguson takes this Saturday's game a lot seriously and plays his strongest team. We will need the a psychological boost after last week. We will see. Not too confident about Park and Ando playing any game before the international break. I hope I am wrong. Rio should play on Tuesday though. As for the veterans, we will need their experience on Tuesday, no doubt. I have a feeling that Si Alex might start with one in each game. Scholes against Arsenal and Giggs agaist Marseille.

giggs11gerrard0 - Spot on pal at 16.24 Yes I will admit that I wanted Nani sold post xmas 2009 but I think most of us had lost patience if we are honest. As for Berbatov. No I have always liked him and anyone can check the archives. NEVER slagged him off. The Bebe signing is strange. Alot of rumours about Mendez? the agent involved and summat stinks. Not sure of the details but a very strange one.

I am pretty sure Fergie will pick a strong team for Saturday. Not just obviously to beat Arsenal but to ensure we don't lose three consecutive games. That is the last thing the players need. We need a morale booster.

obertanthe newstar - Give it a rest? Err no. I never slag players as many on here know but I just don't think they are up to it. I know you are desperate for him to otherwise your moniker may sound a bit daft. He doesn't look bothered to me. Hope I am proved wrong but please don't tell me to "give it a rest " pal. As I say I am more impressed with Morrison, Tunnicliffe , King and Pogba than these two.

Maybe he could talk about the tricks of the trade
Maybe he could talk about himself
Maybe he could talk about the money that he made
Maybe he'd be saying something else
But in the communique you know he's gonna come clean
Think what he say, say what he mean
Maybe tomorrow he got something to say
Communication
CedarsDevil
Communique

Just seen an article on the Daily Mails website (via BBC sports football gossip page) saying that the FA have allegedly contacted FIFA to gain permission to retrospectively punish Rooney for his elbow on McCarthy.

What an absolute fucking joke if it's true! If were honest I think we all know that Roo was lucky not to be sent off for the elbow but this is turning to a witch hunt, what makes this one instance so exceptional from others that take place up and down the country week in week out - United being made an example of again!